How Good People Solve Bad IRS Problems - Nick Nemeth - Manual / Resource - Page 42
End Your IRS Problems
What the IRS is doing in cases like this is saying, “let’s
at least get something out of the taxpayer and make
them promise to be a good taxpayer from now on.”
That is the goal of the Offer in Compromise Program.
The catch is that you must file, and you must pay on
time for the five years following the acceptance of your
OIC (which you need to do anyway!). This program can
literally save you hundreds of thousands of dollars in
taxes, penalties, and interest.
WARNING! Understand that why you failed to pay
your taxes or file your returns is completely irrelevant
to the IRS. You should NEVER tell an IRS employee
considering your OIC that you really don’t think you
owe the taxes for XYZ reasons. Say nothing. The fact
is, the IRS Agent really doesn’t care and doesn’t want
to listen to any taxpayer dribble.
Who is Qualified for an Offer in Compromise?
Almost anyone can be qualified for an OIC or become
qualified -with some planning. Basically, anyone who
doesn’t have enough money in assets or income to pay
the IRS the taxes, penalties, and interest they owe may
qualify.
If you decide this is an option for you, you can file an
OIC by getting IRS Form 656 and applying some IRS
formulas to your situation. Generally, if you can’t pay
what you owe and have no way of ever paying ... then
you owe it to yourself to consider filing an OIC.
However, if you look over the forms and think you
may not be eligible, remember this important fact:
even if you don’t qualify today, you could qualify in
three months, or six months - or even next year.
Filing a successful OIC often requires the hiring of
a trained legal professional. Many taxpayers find
themselves needing to hire an attorney after the OIC
they filed on their own was rejected. By that time, the
bulk of the professional’s time is spent trying to undo
what was said or presented by the taxpayer in the first
OIC.
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